Salman Latif is a software engineer with a specific interest in social media, big data and real-world solutions using the two.Other than that, he is a bit of a gypsy. He also writes in his own blog. You can find him on Google+ and Twitter .

Microsoft and Facebook have revealed the exact number of legal orders about users' data that they've received in six months.

In the wake of the PRISM leaks, users of popular services such as Facebook, Google, and Outlook have been increasingly concerned about the privacy of their accounts. To reassure these users, these companies have started revealing the exact number of data-related legal orders they have received from the U.S. government and intelligence agencies.

The earliest to divulge these numbers are Microsoft and Facebook. Both have come up with the exact number of legal orders to which they had to comply during the past six months.

According to Facebook officials, the social network has received, and complied with, legal orders about 18,000 accounts over the last six months. This, Facebook is quick to remind us, is one-thousandth of one percent of Facebook’s total users.

The numbers for Microsoft are a tad bit high over the past year. According to the company, it has received and complied with legal orders pertaining to the data of 31,000 accounts over the past half year. The numbers tend to reveal a far less alarming situation compared to what the users had been fearing.

Google is also on its way to divulge the exact number of requests it has received. The search giant has reassured that it will release these numbers soon and that its numbers will be far more detailed.

According to a blog post from the Facebook team, “We’re pleased that as a result of our discussions, we can now include in a transparency report all U.S. national security-related requests (including FISA as well as National Security Letters) – which until now no company has been permitted to do. As of today, the government will only authorize us to communicate about these numbers in aggregate, and as a range. This is progress, but we’re continuing to push for even more transparency, so that our users around the world can understand how infrequently we are asked to provide user data on national security grounds.”

These are encouraging signs and show that if internet companies launch concerted efforts, they can make things even more transparent. A limited number of data requests, all security experts agree, will always be needed for security purposes. But by revealing the exact number of such requests, the companies can keep NSA and the U.S. government in check so that no one becomes prone to abusing their power.

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